One Stop Wolverhampton Ltd, in Stafford Street, initially sold an illicit vape to an underage test purchaser in August last year. A little later the same day, a pack of illicit cigarettes were sold to an undercover council officer.

Two days later, Trading Standards officers visited the store with police, a tobacco detection dog and a Trade Marks representative.

On investigation, illicit cigarettes and vapes were found in the counter area. Further illicit cigarettes were also found under a bed in the basement. In total, 228 illicit vapes and 3,089 illicit cigarettes were seized.

Following a trial at Black Country Magistrates Court last month, District Judge Wheeler found One Stop Wolverhampton guilty of ten charges. Sole director Rashid Hussain was found guilty of nine.

Charges related to offences under the Children and Families Act, Tobacco and Related Products Regulations as well as Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations.

On Wednesday (17 December), both One Stop Wolverhampton and Rashid Hussain were fined £20,000 each. They were also ordered to pay costs of £4,000 each as well as a victim surcharge of £2,000 each, making a total of £52,000.

The test purchases and subsequent raid in August last year were carried out under Operation CeCe and Operation Joseph, both national initiatives to tackle the sale of illicit tobacco and illegal vapes, respectively.

Councillor Bhupinder Gakhal, City of Wolverhampton Council’s cabinet member for resident services, said: “We are determined to do all we can to protect our young people by preventing the sale of these products to underage customers.

“We also want to break the supply of illicit vapes and tobacco in Wolverhampton. The sale of these goods threatens the health of our residents as they do not follow UK regulations.

“In addition, such sales harm legitimate local businesses who face unfair competition from the unscrupulous retailers. This case is another great result for our Trading Standards team who work extremely hard to crack down on any business selling and supplying illicit and dangerous products.”

Lord Michael Bichard, Chair, National Trading Standards, said: “The illicit tobacco trade is driven by organised criminal gangs and poses serious risks to local communities, especially young people.

“Since its launch, Operation CeCe – a National Trading Standards initiative in partnership with HMRC that City of Wolverhampton Council, part of CEnTSA (Central England Trading Standards Authorities), supports – has removed 69 million illegal cigarettes, 19,750kg of hand-rolling tobacco and almost 175kg of shisha products from sale, helping to clamp down on this illicit trade and protect communities and honest businesses across the UK.” 

Anyone who thinks they may have been sold illegal goods or suspect someone is selling them, is asked to email trading.standards@wolverhampton.gov.uk or visit www.citizensadvice.org.uk